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Rock Band platform now has over 1,000 songs

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 25th 2009 at 2:00PM }

A recent press release has informed us that with the release of today's Rock Band 2 DLC pack, Harmonix has met its goal of having over 1,000 songs on the platform before the holidays. According to the presser, these tracks represent the work of 390 musical artists. The rhythm gaming community has downloaded over 60 million songs from the Rock Band Music Store, which Harmonix has kept alive and kicking with new musical additions for 105 consecutive weeks.

To put this achievement in chronological terms, we'd estimate that the average length of these songs is, oh, about four minutes. By our calculations, a full playthrough of the Rock Band catalog would take you two days, 18 hours and 40 minutes. Not accounting for the number of times you'll inevitably fail out on "Painkiller," of course.

Congratulations, Harmonix, on this rocking accomplishment! Now, get back to work. That Paul Simon track pack isn't going to program itself.

Confirmed for Black Friday: Old Navy giving Lego Rock Band with $20 clothing purchase

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 24th 2009 at 1:10PM }

We hope you've been putting off purchasing that that new fleece jacket you've had your eye on, because Old Navy will be running one hell of a video game deal this coming Black Friday. As suggested by a supposedly leaked circular earlier this month, anyone who spends $20 on the store's merchandise will receive Lego Rock Band for free on the platform of their choice.

The rumored deal was recently confirmed by a television spot (which unfortunately has yet to find its way online). We contacted a handful of locations in Texas, Ohio and Illinois, all of which said the offer would be valid at their stores. However, both the advertisement and the store representatives we spoke to mentioned that copies of the game will be "extremely limited," so we suggest getting to your nearest store as close to its 3 a.m. opening time as your tryptophan-infused body will permit.

Check out Joystiq's Black Friday Game Deals Hub or jump to a retailer guide below:

For more Black Friday coverage, check out Black Friday Deals, Cyber Monday Sales,
And other Black Friday 2009 stories today from Walletpop.com

'About 50%' of Lego Rock Band team was against the game concept

by Andrew Yoon { Nov 5th 2009 at 3:59PM }

"omg they're selling out. they are humpin' the cash cow like activision has been till shes dried up . they're gonna beat the rock band name to a pulp until we are absolutely sick and tired of instrument rhythm games." –fffunfarm06

"I'm so sick of these corny games. All of you people should just learn to play with REAL Legos." –Troy Powers

LEGO Rock Band's very existence is something that both the Joystiq staff and community couldn't help but question. However, animator Matt Palmer revealed that developer TT Fusion also had doubts about the bizarre collaboration. "I know people were saying, 'Oh, they're flogging a Lego license again,'" he recalled during a Develop panel. "I'd say about 50 percent of our studio were for the idea, and about 50 percent were against it."

Considering the game actually came out (this week!), it's apparent that the team eventually banded together to finish the project. Why the change of heart, though? "Many of us started realizing that we weren't just skinning one franchise on another," Palmer explained, noting the need to hand animate the blocky Lego celebrity characters to capture their various "signature styles." That's ... something. Right?

Possible free Lego Rock Band with $20 Old Navy purchase on Black Friday

by JC Fletcher { Nov 5th 2009 at 9:35AM }

We're going to approach this scanned Old Navy Black Friday ad with as much skepticism as we can muster, both because there are a lot of variables and because we, personally, are trying to convince ourselves not to join the Black Friday crowds at Old Navy, of all places.

According to the ad, the retailer will be offering free "Lego Rock Band video games" with purchases of $20 or greater on Friday, November 27. "Your preferred platform may not be available," the ad warns, presumably due to limited overall supply. We're wary that it could be a demo or something like that, but the fact that Old Navy will also be selling Rock Band 2 bundles, and giving away guitar controllers with said bundles, makes this doorbuster deal seem more likely. But it's still crazy to hand out a $50 video game with $20 worth of clothes.

If you want to check it out for yourself, Old Navy stores will be open at 3AM that day. Have fun!

Check out Joystiq's Black Friday Game Deals Hub or jump to a retailer guide below:

For more Black Friday coverage, check out Black Friday Deals, Cyber Monday Sales,
And other Black Friday 2009 stories today from Walletpop.com

New LEGO Rock Band trailer will brick your screen

by David Hinkle { Oct 26th 2009 at 10:00PM }

At this point, many of you have likely already formed your Final Opinion™ on the blocky cousin to your regular, run-of-the-mill Rock Band: LEGO Rock Band. This latest trailer should then either excite you or induce a lifeless "meh." For us, it's the former, with the best part of this trailer obviously being the brief look at Chuck Norris rocking the guitar, right around the 58-second mark.

Oh, and a little "Final Countdown" certainly doesn't hurt.

Video: Queen is the champion of Lego Rock Band

by David Hinkle { Oct 20th 2009 at 3:00PM }

Finally, you get to see what Brian May considers "the ultimate accolade:" Queen in Lego Rock Band. Warner Bros. just dished out a new trailer and screens showing Freddie and co. strutting their stuff on the blocky stage. Sadly, the game will only have two Queen tracks, but don't be such a grumpy Gus! Theoretically, you should be able to access those Queen songs you downloaded from the Rock Band Music Store in Lego Rock Band -- granted the songs have been rated as "suitable for all ages."

Oh, and don't expect to rent Lego Rock Band and extract all of its juicy tunes to your regular old Rock Band. Remember: you'll need a special code this time around.

Gallery: Queen in Lego Rock Band

Blur gets blocky in Lego Rock Band

by JC Fletcher { Oct 15th 2009 at 1:00PM }

Lego Rock Band is quickly becoming a who's who of famous musicians who don't mind having their hands rendered as cylindrical claws. But until recently, for a game called Rock Band, it's been heavy on the solo artists and suspiciously light on the actual bands.

Queen will be brickified for the game, but the first musical combo to be fully shown in LEGO form is Blur, best known for that one song with all the "Woo-hoos" in it. Rolling Stone has the first footage of the band performing that song in-game. You might as well watch it, since the song's already stuck in your head now.

[Via Kotaku]

Lego Rock Band tracks revealed, transferable to Rock Band

by Alexander Sliwinski { Oct 12th 2009 at 10:04AM }

All the block-rockin' beats in Lego Rock Band have been revealed, with Warner Bros. also confirming upcoming DLC and a song exporting feature. Xbox 360 and PS3 owners will have the option to download "all of the songs in the Rock Band Music Store that have been identified to be suitable for all ages." Only songs deemed appropriate will appear within the Lego Rock Band Store and the game should "highlight" any newly added "family-friendly" tracks.

The Lego Rock Band disc export will cost $9.99 (800

) and transfer all tracks from the Lego disc for use on the regular Rock Band platform. It appears to work in the same way as the conversion of the original Rock Band disc, except that owners will have to enter "a unique code from an insert in their game manual into a dedicated website" to activate the option. Check out the full set list for the console and DS versions of Lego Rock Band after the break.

Continued →

David Bowie invites us all to dance in latest Lego Rock Band trailer

by Ben Gilbert { Oct 6th 2009 at 11:58PM }

No, really, that's David Bowie. Click for a higher-resolution peak

Warner Bros. today announced the inclusion of David Bowie as a second playable character in upcoming music/rhythm game, Lego Rock Band, and also handed over a mess of new media seen above and below. Coupled with last month's Iggy Pop announcement , the game's playable-musician-who-probably-shouldn't-be-in-a kids-game quotient has officially been doubled. One major plus for Bowie: Lego character gender ambiguity is all the more fitting. Bravo, MTV Games! Now that's synergy.

Gallery: Lego Rock Band (David Bowie)

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Iggy Pop goes shirtless for Lego Rock Band

by Ben Gilbert { Sep 12th 2009 at 9:00PM }

We can't even begin to thank Harmonix for giving us a shirtless version of Iggy Pop that we're not completely revolted by. The guy's really been put through his paces over the years, so it seems only deserving that he should be all gussied up by Lego for upcoming rhythm/music game, Lego Rock Band.

Jeux Video discovered the images, as well as a bit of gameplay with the iconic Stooges frontman. Unfortunately, the one major problem with licensing your likeness to a Lego game persists: You just look like a generic Lego dude! Is that Iggy Pop above? Sure, why not! People that could also be include, but are not limited to, certain versions of Eric Stoltz, and a muscle-bound Edgar Winter.

[Via VG247]

Rumor: Rock Band 2 will import LEGO Rock Band tracks

by Randy Nelson { Aug 31st 2009 at 9:00PM }

Wired's GameLife cites a "highly-placed source close to Harmonix" as informing the site that Rock Band 2 owners will be able to rip tracks from the LEGO Rock Band game disc, just as they were able to do with songs from the original Rock Band. The source also notes that a "small fee" will probably be involved -- again, just as with Rock Band to Rock Band 2 song importing. ($5, in case you forgot.)

Along with this rumored feature, the site has posted a list of upcoming DLC, including 10 tracks from Queen and three from The Raconteurs due in October. Three songs from The White Stripes are listed for November release. Undisclosed material from Attack! Attack! and The Duke Spirit appears as undated Rock Band Network content.

When contacted for comment, Harmonix told Joystiq, "While we don't comment on rumors or speculation with regards to our upcoming downloadable content, we can promise that the Rock Band platform is poised to remain the unchallenged best value and source of music for rhythm games."

This supposed "leak" is very conveniently timed, given that Guitar Hero 5 releases tomorrow. Doncha' think?

Lego Rock Band DS is peripheral-free

by JC Fletcher { Aug 20th 2009 at 2:58PM }

Warner Bros. has finally revealed the first screenshots and information about the mysterious DS version of Lego Rock Band. Unlike its DS Guitar Hero counterparts, Lego Rock Band doesn't make use of any peripherals beyond the standard DS stylus. Instead, it's an experience similar to Rock Band Unplugged on the PSP, also developed by Backbone -- in which players use the buttons to hit notes, switching between instrumental tracks throughout the song. This is wonderful news for those of us who loved Frequency and Amplitude.

The major differences between Lego and Unplugged include, of course, the Lego styling and character building options, as well as the ability to hit notes using either buttons or the stylus. Lego Rock Band includes multiplayer for up to four people, and will be out Holiday 2009 along with the other platform versions. Check after the break for the first known tracks!

Gallery: Lego Rock Band (DS)

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LEGO + Rock Band = debut gameplay trailer

by Andrew Yoon { Aug 17th 2009 at 8:30PM }

You will be totally surprised by this, the very first gameplay trailer for LEGO Rock Band. MTV Multiplayer has secured the exclusive unveiling of this -- the ultimate merging of LEGO and music gameplay. Finally! The construction toy/music game niche can finally stop sending their creepy fanfics to Harmonix as their prayers have finally been answered.

Are you ready to brick your pants? Check out the trailer after the break.

Continued →

Skeleton rock stars destroy buildings with rock power in Lego Rock Band

by Justin McElroy { Jul 9th 2009 at 2:10PM }

It's a rarity, but we'll admit it when it occurs: We might have judged a game too quickly -- specifically, Lego Rock Band. While we assumed it would just be a brickalyzed version of the game we all know, love and are the tiniest bit sick of, a recent interview has us questioning that.

TT Games boss Jonathan Smith told VG247, "The Lego character customizer means that pirates, knights and skeletons can be rock stars too, in amazing new locations. Battle sea-monsters, smash up an entire building, or take a trip into space, all with the power of rock!"

Publishers, if you're curious about how to get our attention, skeleton rock stars destroying buildings with rock power before traveling into space is a great way to start.